TwelveSticks Member

I do 5:2 and have done for 22+ weeks (losing 49 lbs in the process). I do follow a slight calorie restriction on non-fast days as well though. I have been through phases of not eating enough and eating too much. After much experimentation, I have settled on a formula for non-fast days which is working beautifully for me:…

Do you like sushi? Or how about chinese food? Some Rice or Noodle dishes can be nice cold. I used to take a home-made ham-fried-rice with me as a packed lunch in the past...

It depends on what you entered as your activity level settings when you used MFP to calculate your goal. If you entered anything more than the basic "sedentary" level, then the goal MFP has given you will already include some calories to take account of the exercise levels you told it you were doing. The surest way to…

Yep - what "srsteier" said! ^^^

If you have constipation issues, then anything could happen when you step on the scales. Only time will show the downward trend which you will surely get if you keep eating at the levels you are. You certainly can't have put a pound of fat on, not unless you had a sneaky extra 3,500 calories in the last week and aren't…

Don't guess your TDEE (which is what using online calculators amounts to) - work out your own, actual TDEE. Assuming you kept track of how much you ate and how much weight you lost in the last X weeks(?), then work out your real-life TDEE using the formula: TDEE = Total Calories Consumed + (Lbs lost * 3500)Number of days…

Keeping going when you don't lose any weight for several weeks in a row. That's always been the diet-killer for me in the past...

It sounds like you need to eat back some exercise calories, but not all of them. Speaking from my own personal experience (I used to be 301lb and am around 6 foot, so not massively different), 1700 a day worked fine until I started doing more exercise, then I found that my weight loss slowed significantly. The formula I…

I've actually just posted a Blog entry about the fun-and-games involved with working out your TDEE: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/TwelveSticks/view/what-is-my-tdee-544304 The online calculators can give you up to 20% different numbers, and even then they are only averages. However, if you have been logging all your food…

I've been backwards and forwards with this myself. I was surprised by the MFP estimates at first too. I mostly only walk for my exercise, but sometimes I do proper hikes in the hills and those burns looked particularly unrealistic. So I started using an App on my iPhone (I tried out several actually), and then got an HRM…

According to what I've read, women should measure the widest part, usually around midway between the belly button and the ribs. Men however should measure at the navel. I have no idea why...

Excellent - you sound really pumped up. Now you just have to keep that level of focus and you'll be laughing. With the help of people on here especially, you'll be able to do it!

Feel free to add me - male, same time zone, lost a fair amount but still have quite a bit to lose. I'm told my diary is interesting... :)

I wrote a blog post about this subject with some ideas I found useful... http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/TwelveSticks/view/setting-goals-or-chipping-away-at-it-517800

Use the MFP calculator. Set your activity levels to the lowest possible setting and tell it you want to lose 1-1.5lb per week (more than that isn't considered healthy and can lead to saggy skin problems etc.). Then go with what MFP tells you to eat, BUT enter any exercise you do and eat back most, if not all of those…

Yep - I'm sure that you'll be swamped with replies saying this, but it's probably that you need to eat more, no matter how counter-intuitive that seems... Type your figures into an online TDEE calculator and you'll probably find your body needs around 2300 calories a day to 'break even'. You'll see a lot of recommendations…

Personally, I eat two 300Cal meals - lunch and dinner - on fast days. Nothing else. So I basically fast for 16 hours, eat, 'fast' for 6 hours, eat, and then fast for 15 hours. I believe that the recommendation for the health benefits is to try to go as long as possible between meals if you can, so that would be to eat one…

Definitely time for a cull, it seems. I periodically weed out people who don't contribute as most of my MFP buddies are quite active and very supportive - it really helps to find people like that. Feel free to add me if you like. I'm on here faaaar too much for my own good, so you're sure to get sick of my comments!

It never ceases to amaze how some people can find ways to obsess about their (and mostly other people's) bodies. If those three women in that photo above (with the red circles showing their 'flaws') are examples of what not to look like, then lord help you all, ladies...

I've been doing the "fast diet" (more commonly known as "5:2" on here) for 16 weeks (fast #33 today). It works a treat for weight loss (39lbs so far), and supposedly has other health benefits too (though many would argue they are as yet unproven). I personally haven't noticed any real physical problems (tiredness,…

Thanks for the feedback - especially pluckabee. It's not that I'm particularly discouraged, nor do I plan to change anything. Logic tells me that I can't be gaining fat while eating a deficit, and I know that exercising is better than not. I was more just puzzling at why I always seem to have slower weight loss weeks after…

I don't think that's anything strange - 6lb is perhaps at the high end of daily/nightly fluctuation, but not unusual. I once saw a 2lb loss between getting weighed at 6am and getting weighed 2 hours later, after just going back to bed for that time. As others have said, just get into a routine and only get weighed under…

Not sure exactly what you're scared of, but I suspect it's physical assault? In which case, I'd say you have little to worry about - if you're running, you'll have nothing to interest a mugger, and anyone with more sinister intentions won't want to tackle someone who is obviously fit and able to run away from them.…

Walk. Just walk. It's easy and it's free. I recommend you listen to something on an iPod or whatever while you walk. Some people like audiobooks, some just music. I like comedy and sports podcasts. Walk for at least 20 minutes, as fast as you can comfortably go. Try to walk for 40-50 minutes though, but build up to it over…

Between 8 and 9 months initially - that was with just (almost) daily walking and virtually no dieting (I had over 120 lb to lose altogether). With less to lose, dieting needed to be added to walking to keep up about 1.5lb a week loss. Since I started 5:2, I have been losing over 2lb a week, so would expect to lose 50lb in…

Put it this way - if it worked, then someone would be making a product with just honey and cinnamon in it, to which you "just add warm water" to use. People all over the world would be using it and they'd be billionaires. Since that company doesn't exist, you can take it as the horse*** it sounds like...

It shouldn't be too hard to only eat a slice or two with a nice salad. With the cals you have left, you could eat much more, of course. Or just make yourself something else and make sure you eat it at the same time and that all the pizza gets eaten - force feed your husband if you have to! That's what I do - we often order…

Dried cranberries. A small amount (10g) on Bran Flakes or sprinkled over a salad really gives the food a sweet and slightly chewy kick and all for only 30 calories or so...

Well done indeed! And 10lb is no "tiny success" - that's a lot of weight, and something to be proud of. Keep it up!

As others above have said - "screw 'em"! I'm sure (I hope) you get loads of positive feedback and encouragement on here, so keep the two separate and report your weight loss victories here and not on FB. They're probably jealous anyway! Oh, and very well done on the loss so far - keep it up :)